MARCH MADNESS at GOLDEN 1 CENTER in Sacramento, Calif.

Mar 29
3 min read

Updated: Apr 1

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2026 DIV. 1 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

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UCLA's Angela Dugalić (No. 32) of UCLA looks for spacing to make a pass around Duke's Toby Fournier (No.35). No. 21 Arianna Roberson and No. 51 Lauren Betts observe the action. Publicity Agents photo by Tony Ray Harvey

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Photos, Footage, and Reported by Tony ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌ ‌|‌ Public Information Officer

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Betts, UCLA Head Back To The Final 4

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Sacramento, Calif. — The first game of the 2026 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament Elite Eight (Regional 2) at the Golden 1 Center was a dandy of a contest between two collegiate powerhouses.

Lauren Betts led the UCLA Bruins with 23 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, and five blocked shots in their 70-58 victory over the Duke Blue Devils on March 29 to advance to the Final Four.

Betts made 9 of 14 shots from the field and 5 of 6 at the foul line in 37 minutes for UCLA (35-1). She has now reached double figures in each of her last seven games, scoring 20 or more points three times.

Serbian-American Angela Dugalić had 15 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals off the bench for UCLA. Gabriella Jaquez added nine points, five rebounds, one assist, and one steal.

The Lady Bruins trailed by 10 points in the first half.

“I think the maturity of this team is what gets us to this point,” Betts said. “I mean, we could have gone into that locker room and just kept our heads down and gotten mad at each other and been pissed off. But we wanted to win this game.”

Despite 18 turnovers and missing 2 of 14 shots from behind the arc, UCLA made 29 of 58 shots (50%) from the floor and 10 of 13 from the line (76.9%). Charlisse Leger-Walker had six of UCLA’s 16 assists.

Taina Mair had 21 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and four steals for Duke (27-9), while Riley Nelson added 13 points and 3 rebounds. Delaney Thomas had 12 points, six rebounds, and two assists.

Duke head coach Kara Lawson said the early turnovers in the third quarter changed the dynamics of the game in the second half.

“Anytime you go into halftime, regardless of whether you’re up or down, you want to emphasize the start of the third quarter to be able to be locked in and try to be the team that has the run out of the gates,” Lawson said. “They did a great job out of the gates, forced some turnovers.”

Kara Lawson, Duke heach coach, watch the action from the sidelines. Her team fell 70-58 to UCLA in the NCAA's Elite Eight.

Riley Nelson scored seven straight points to give Duke a 17-11 lead in the opening quarter. The Blue Devils led by eight points, but the Lady Bruins cut the margin to 21-17 on a lay-up by Betts to end the frame.

At the 4:10 mark, the Dukies built up a 33-23 advantage on a basket by Nelson in the second frame. The Blue Devils led 39-31 at the break. Nelson and Mair combined for 23 points in the first half.

UCLA committed 12 turnovers in the first 20 minutes to Duke’s six. The Blue Devils collected six steals from the Lady Bruins’ miscues, handling the basketball. L. Betts had eight points and three blocks.

The Bruins came out in the second half on fire on a 16-6 run, completed with a triple by a basket by Kneppkens to give UCLA a 47-45 lead with 2:40 remaining in the third quarter. The Bruins led 51-47 after three quarters.

L. Betts continued to show her weight-room presence in the fourth quarter. She muscled her way to six-straight points to give UCLA a 62-50 edge. KiKi Rice’s two free throws with 34.4 seconds left in the game finished off the Blue Devils for good.